Funny Video About Officers at Moms Funeral
The mayor and the police commissioner remember Officer Mora's warm spirit.
For the second time in five days, a New York City police officer who was killed while responding to a 911 call is being mourned at St. Patrick's Cathedral, as thousands of officers streamed into Midtown Manhattan on Wednesday, and speakers recalled Officer Wilbert Mora's empathetic spirit and deep care for those around him.
The death of Officer Mora, 27, was announced on Jan. 25, four days after he and his partner were shot while responding to a domestic disturbance in Harlem. On Wednesday, those who knew Officer Mora reflected on his strong desire to make a change on the force and give back to his community, hopes that were cut short as he and his partner, Jason Rivera, both died after the shooting.
Officer Mora had immigrated to New York with his family when he was about 7 years old, and was part of a growing contingency of Dominican officers who, along with other younger Latino officers, have changed the face of a department that was once overwhelmingly white.
"Wilbert and his family came to this country for an opportunity, safety and security — and the better life that so many in this city work for and deserve every day," the police commissioner, Keechant Sewell, said.
His partner, Officer Rivera, 22, died the night of the shooting and was laid to rest last Friday in a service that saw officers from around the country gather under snow flurries in a mass that stretched for blocks down Fifth Avenue. He was remembered as a passionate rookie who dreamed of making a meaningful change in relations between the police and communities they serve.
The two police officers were killed in the first weeks of Mayor Eric Adams's tenure, and as he gave his eulogy for Officer Mora, he decried the problems of shootings and illegal guns that make them possible. He pledged to create a change in a city shaken by high-profile incidents of violence, which he said affect all residents.
"Even when the bullet hits the body our own citizens, the emotional trauma continues to rip the anatomy of our city — and the pathway never ends for generations to come," Mr. Adams said.
The funeral on Wednesday, which began at 10 a.m. at the same landmark church where Officer Rivera's service was held, also included eulogies from his sister and a cousin. A separate ceremony will take place after the service at a cemetery in Woodside, Queens.
Just as they did for Officer Rivera's funeral, officers from all over the region — from the New York City suburbs to Fairfax County, Virginia — arrived to pay their respects.
Officer Mora joined the department in 2018 and was assigned to the 32nd Precinct in November 2019. He was remembered on Wednesday as someone whose tall and imposing stature belied a compassionate personality, as those who worked with him described the warm hugs he gave to friends and his constant enthusiasm for learning.
"If you were going through a hard time and needed a friend to lean on or a shoulder to cry on, Wilbert would be on FaceTime lending that support," said Inspector Amir Yakatally, the commanding officer of the 32nd Precinct.
Like his partner, he showed a deep awareness of shortcomings in the policing in predominantly Black and Latino neighborhoods across the city — and an aspiration to create new approaches. He grew up during the height of stop and frisk in New York, and as a student, he studied the effects of those tactics, along with less confrontational strategies, on neighborhoods like East Harlem, where he lived.
On Wednesday, Commissioner Sewell gave Officer Mora a posthumous promotion to detective first-grade — the highest rank for a detective — just as she had for Officer Rivera last week as part of the department's long tradition for officers killed in the line of duty.
Officers Mora and Rivera were part of a team of three who responded on Jan. 21 to a 911 call at a Harlem apartment: A mother had asked the police to speak with her adult son, Lashawn McNeil, 47, after he verbally threatened her while the two were arguing. She made no mention of weapons or violence in the apartment.
When the officers arrived, they were met at the door by the mother, who told them that her son was in a back bedroom, the police have said. She asked him to come out from the room, which was at the end of a long, cramped hallway. But he did not join them.
Officers Mora and Rivera made their way down the hall toward the door, one of them calling out for Mr. McNeil. But as the two officers neared the bedroom, the police said, Mr. McNeil opened fire with a pistol equipped with a high-capacity drum magazine, gravely wounding them both.
The shooting marked the first time in seven years that two city police officers have been killed together on the job.
The third officer, a trainee, had stayed back to speak with Mr. McNeil's mother and a brother who was also there. After the gunfire erupted, that officer rushed the mother and brother into the kitchen, then shot Mr. McNeil twice, in the head and arm. He died from his injuries last week.
Feb. 2, 2022, 1:15 p.m. ET
Among the mourners at Detective Mora's funeral was Detective Dalsh Veve, who was nearly killed when he was dragged during a car stop in 2017. He suffered severe brain damage and has since used a wheelchair, serving as a reminder of the risks officers face in some encounters.
Feb. 2, 2022, 12:57 p.m. ET
As Officer Mora's funeral service ended and the procession accompanying his body passed, the solemn aura that had hung over Fifth Avenue lifted. Officers and pedestrians chatted as they walked along Fifth Avenue and Midtown's numbered streets. About half a mile from the cathedral, a screen next to the police station in Times Square showed images of Officer Mora and his partner, Officer Jason Rivera, who was also slain. In the photos, they were smiling alongside an American flag.
Image
Feb. 2, 2022, 12:42 p.m. ET
Thousands of officers continue to line the sides of Fifth Avenue, standing at attention a dozen rows deep as bagpipe players, police vehicles and emergency trucks slowly move down the street, accompanying the hearse carrying Officer Mora's casket. On some streets, small groups of pedestrians stand in silence, having stopped to mourn Officer Mora and catch a glimpse of the procession moves as it moves through.
Image
Feb. 2, 2022, 12:33 p.m. ET
The streets surrounding the cathedral are eerily quiet, save for the tolling of a bell, as a wave of grief blows over family, friends, ranks of police officers and onlookers. The rumble of police motorcycles grows as the procession with Officer Mora's casket heads down Fifth Avenue. Minutes earlier eight helicopters flew over.
Image
Feb. 2, 2022, 12:20 p.m. ET
Loved ones describe an affectionate, young officer who was known as a 'big teddy bear.'
Image
As loved ones remembered Officer Wilbert Mora on Wednesday, they offered an image of a young man who was known as a "big teddy bear" — someone who was steadfastly warmhearted and sought to make the most of small moments with people he cared for.
Officer Mora's brother, Wilson, recalled a childhood spent playing video games with his friends and running up to his mother in the mornings, greeting her with an embrace and performing a "funny belly dance" to earn a smile.
"You were always so affectionate with every one you got close to," he said. "Mom showered us with love, and you absorbed it like a sponge."
Wilson Mora recalled painful moments when he was "at his worst," and his brother still remained patient, caring and never held "an ounce of meanness." The two had hoped to go on road trips and camping journeys together, he said — plans that were cut short when Officer Mora was shot to death while responding to a 911 call in Harlem.
"I never got the chance to tell you how truly special I thought you were," he said, calling him "baby bro." "I wanted to experience the adventure with you because your love for life was infectious."
Officer Mora's older sister, Karina Mora, also spoke passionately about her brother, calling him a young man "full of dreams," who "lit up the house with his smile."
She described the immense pride she felt the day he graduated from the police academy. His death, she said, "is a nightmare that never ends," recalling the "infinite peace" she felt upon his graduation and her relief that he would not be "lost to the streets of New York" like so many other young people in his community.
"I never imagined my peace would last less than four years," she said in Spanish.
She added: "He was the happiness of the house. It didn't matter how tired he was when he got home. He lit up the house with his smile and this light has been put out, with pain, forever."
Feb. 2, 2022, 12:09 p.m. ET
Thousands of police officers snapped to attention along Fifth Avenue as Officer Mora's funeral concluded. Officers from as close as Nassau County and as far as Bahrain were in the crowd.
Image
Feb. 2, 2022, 12:06 p.m. ET
Mayor Adams vows 'we will win this fight' against gun violence
Video
transcript
transcript
N.Y.C. Mayor Vows to Win the Battle of 'New Yorkers Against the Killers'
Mayor Eric Adams reiterated his pledge to support the city's police department and make the city safer, during a eulogy for Officer Wilbert Mora. Officer Mora was shot and killed while responding to a domestic disturbance in Harlem last month.
-
Last night, we were reminded again about the danger and over proliferation of guns that are carving highways of death. Even when the bullet hits the body of our citizens. The emotional trauma continues to rip the anatomy of our city. And the pathway never ends in generations to come. We are going to give you the resources to fight this senseless violence. It is New Yorkers against the killers, and we will not lose, we will protect our city. We'll work to end the gun violence that has engulfed our city with pain and despair, and protect those who put their lives on the line every day.
Speaking at a police officer's funeral for the second time in his first weeks in office, Mayor Eric Adams repeated his pledge to reduce gun violence in New York City.
Mr. Adams thanked Officer Wilbert Mora's parents for sharing their son with New York City and said that the shooting of an off-duty police officer on Tuesday night was another example of gun violence plaguing the city.
"Last night we were reminded again about the danger of the proliferation of guns that are carving a highway of death," the mayor said. The officer was shot in the shoulder after two men attempted to steal his car, the police said; the men were later arrested and the officer was taken to a hospital.
Mr. Adams, a former police captain, said the city was facing a battle of "New York against the killers" and he would not lose.
"We will win this fight," he said. "We will win it together."
Three days after Officers Mora and Jason Rivera were killed, Mr. Adams released an ambitious public safety plan that relies on bringing back a contentious plainclothes anti-crime police unit to get guns off the streets. Mr. Adams also called for changes to state bail laws, but it is unclear if state lawmakers will be willing to revisit bail reform.
At Officer Mora's funeral, Mr. Adams repeated comments he made at Officer Rivera's funeral, telling officers that he would give them the resources they need to make the city safer. In his first five weeks as mayor, four other police officers have been shot.
Mr. Adams thanked Officer Sumit Sulan, a rookie officer who shot and mortally wounded the man who killed Officers Mora and Rivera. Mr. Adams said he visited Officer Sulan and his family in Queens, and the officer told the mayor he was going to put his uniform back on and return to work.
"He's a hero to save the lives of his fellow officers," the mayor said.
Feb. 2, 2022, 12:00 p.m. ET
Hundreds of officers and guests spill out of the Cathedral as the funeral comes to a close. Surrounding N.Y.P.D. band, people are standing shoulder to shoulder waiting for the procession of Mora's casket to begin.
Feb. 2, 2022, 11:59 a.m. ET
Officer Mora's brother, Wilson, reflected like many speakers on how his sibling's large stature hid his vibrant and affectionate personality. "I remember how you always lit up the room with your smile," he said, recalling that he often ran up to his mother as a child in the mornings to hug her and perform a "little belly dance." "Everyone says you were a big teddy bear of a man, but you were like that even when you were little," he continued.
Image
Feb. 2, 2022, 11:56 a.m. ET
Claribel Jiminian, a cousin of Officer Mora, described in Spanish, at times through tears, how Officer Mora was the pride of his family, describing his "sacrifice for his community" even in his death.
Feb. 2, 2022, 11:45 a.m. ET
Officer Mora's sister described Officer Mora and Officer Rivera as "two young men who wanted to make a difference in society." She then asked, with her voice rising, "How many more Wilberts? How many more Jasons? How many more police officers have to lose their lives so that the system changes?"
Feb. 2, 2022, 11:43 a.m. ET
Officer Mora's older sister, Karina Mora, described her brother as a young man "full of dreams," who "lit up the house with his smile." In a eulogy in Spanish she described the pride she felt the day he graduated from the police academy. His death, she said, "is a nightmare that never ends."
Image
Feb. 2, 2022, 11:41 a.m. ET
Officer Mora has been heralded by eulogists several times for being an organ donor — after being mortally wounded, the young officer's family made the decision to donate his organs. LiveOnNY, the region's primary organ donation organization, said last week that his donation saved five lives.
Image
Feb. 2, 2022, 11:28 a.m. ET
Inspector Amir Yakatally, the commanding officer of the 32nd Precinct where Detective Mora worked, shed more light on the slain officer's last moments, noting that he fired back at the man who killed him. "On that dreadful day, Wilbert kept his promise to serve and protect, and did so until his last breath," the commander said.
Feb. 2, 2022, 11:21 a.m. ET
As she did at Officer Rivera's funeral last week, Sewell spoke forcefully in her eulogy for Officer Mora, decrying gun violence in the city and pledging that the department would rally behind the loss of the two officers to fight the problem. "This execution devastates a family, rocks the soul of a department, touches the heart of a nation and tests the faith of this city," she said.
Video
Feb. 2, 2022, 11:16 a.m. ET
Adams thanked Officer Sumit Sulan, a rookie officer who shot and mortally wounded the man who killed Officers Mora and Rivera.
The mayor said he visited Officer Sulan and his family in Queens, and the officer told Adams he was going to put his uniform back on and help him address gun violence.
"We will win this fight," the mayor said. "We will win it together."
Image
Feb. 2, 2022, 11:14 a.m. ET
The police commissioner promoted Officer Mora to the rank of detective first-grade, continuing a tradition of post-humous promotions for officers killed in the line of duty. "Wilbert served this department bravely, as a colossal symbol of promise, not for the size of his frame but for the goodness in his heart," she said.
Video
Feb. 2, 2022, 11:13 a.m. ET
Officer Mora was part of a growing contingent of Latino officers on the force. He was born in the Dominican Republic and immigrated to New York with his family when he was about 7 years old. Commissioner Keechant Sewell said that he and his relatives had come to this country for "an opportunity, safety and security — and the better life that so many in this city work for."
Image
Feb. 2, 2022, 11:09 a.m. ET
Over Adams's first five weeks in office, six police officers have been shot, including Officer Mora — something that the mayor has attributed to the prevalence of illegal weapons. During his eulogy, he mentioned the shooting of an officer in Queens on Tuesday night. Officials said he was on his way to work in his personal car when two men attempted to rob him — and one shot him in the shoulder once he left his vehicle.
Image
Feb. 2, 2022, 11:04 a.m. ET
The mayor also drove home a point that he often has when discussing gun violence in the city: that the pain from one shooting can ripple through communities long after a funeral and continue to surface in day-to-day life. "Even when the bullet hits the body of our citizens, the emotional trauma continues to rip the anatomy of our city — and the pathway never ends for generations to come," he said.
Image
Feb. 2, 2022, 11:04 a.m. ET
Adams thanks Officer Mora's parents for sharing their son with New York City and says that the city was reminded once again of the over-proliferation of guns when an off-duty police officer was shot last night on his way to work.
"We reflect on his bravery," the mayor said of Officer Mora. "We remember his sacrifice."
He repeats his pledge to police officers that he made at Officer Rivera's funeral that he will give them the resources they need to make the city safer.
Video
Feb. 2, 2022, 10:53 a.m. ET
As they were last week, the mayor and the governor are seated next to each other in the front row. As officials have rolled out plans to respond to the issues of gun violence and illegal weapons they say are responsible for Officer Mora's death, Adams and Hochul have tried to project a unified front in their response — something on display here this morning.
Image
Feb. 2, 2022, 10:50 a.m. ET
The number of police officers and other observers is growing, as people fill the sidewalks along Fifth Avenue between 49th and 50th Streets. The mood is somber as people listen attentively to the funeral service.
Image
Feb. 2, 2022, 10:18 a.m. ET
Near 49th Street, a few blocks away from St. Patrick's Cathedral, a small group of officers from the 32nd precinct — where Officer Mora had been assigned since November 2019 — are standing behind a police barrier. They're near the front of the huge audience of officers that will fill the sidewalks on Fifth Avenue after the funeral service ends.
Image
Feb. 2, 2022, 10:08 a.m. ET
Police funerals represent a somber tradition in New York.
Image
In New York, the funeral for a police officer who died in the line of duty is often marked by its somber traditions, including officers who stand in a stoic silence with their white-gloved hands at their side; helicopters that leave a gap of open sky to represent the life lost as they hover overhead; and the humming of the police motorcycles that lead the vast processions to burial sites.
The city last lost an officer to a fatal shooting in 2019, when Brian Mulkeen, a 33-year-old seen as a rising star in the department, was killed by so-called friendly fire from other officers as he struggled with an armed man in the Bronx.
At the funeral in Monroe, N.Y., Officer Mulkeen's hometown, James P. O'Neill, the police commissioner at the time, was brought to tears as he recalled the officer's giving up a career on Wall Street for one where he could protect people. He described the pain of sending off a member of the department.
"This is the hardest thing I have to do," Commissioner O'Neill said.
The killings of Officers Wilbert Mora and his partner, Jason Rivera also called to mind the last time two officers were fatally shot together in New York, when a gunman approached and opened fire on two officers, Wenjian Liu and Rafael Ramos, in 2014 as they were sitting in their vehicle.
Their funerals drew large crowds, including many who did not know either officer but who felt compelled to offer their condolences following the shooting, which involved a man who said that he intended to seek revenge on the police for the killing of Michael Brown by an officer in Ferguson, Mo.
More than 20,000 people traveled to a church in Queens for Officer Ramos's ceremony, including then-Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr.
Days later, visitors from across the county turned out for Officer Wenjian Liu's service in Brooklyn. It was a distinct blend of police traditions and Chinese customs; he was believed to be the first Chinese American officer killed in the line of duty in New York.
Feb. 2, 2022, 10:08 a.m. ET
As Officer Mora's funeral begins, the area directly in front of St. Patrick's Cathedral is relatively quiet, with a few officers standing in small groups on the street listening to the service. The large majority have gathered further down Fifth Avenue.
Image
Feb. 2, 2022, 10:03 a.m. ET
Just as many did for Officer Jason Rivera's funeral last week, police from throughout the region — from as close as New York's suburbs to Fairfax County, Virginia and beyond — have been among those on Fifth Avenue this morning. We're still waiting for the mass of N.Y.P.D. officers that was here last week to arrive in full.
Image
Feb. 2, 2022, 9:42 a.m. ET
Cynthia Chamble, 51, went to Officer Jason Rivera's funeral last week and returned today. She joined the National Guard three weeks after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and said she empathized with the pain of losing a fellow member of service.
"It hurts because they were so young, and they were just trying to do their jobs," said Ms. Chamble, who lives in Brooklyn. "In the military we lose them young, too. As a veteran, we know we can lose our lives. But we don't expect it for police officers, because they're not supposed to die."
The recent nationwide protests against police abuses had been on her mind, she said, adding that officers and communities must work together. "We must remember we belong to them and they belong to us," she said.
Image
Feb. 2, 2022, 9:29 a.m. ET
Members of the organization Project Thank A Cop walked along Fifth Avenue handing out hand warmers and snacks.
"My husband is a New York City police officer," Shelia Erickson, 47, of Long Island said. "As a police officer's wife the worst call that you ever want to receive is that they're not coming home."
"So we're here to support and hold up their loved ones today."
Image
Feb. 2, 2022, 9:20 a.m. ET
Farther down Fifth Avenue, hundreds of recruits from the Police Academy practiced getting into formation for the eventual procession of Officer Mora's casket, which will travel south through Manhattan after the service.
Image
Feb. 2, 2022, 9:14 a.m. ET
The scene in Midtown was fairly quiet around 8:30 a.m., with a couple hundred officers gathered in the area near St. Patrick's Cathedral and few visitors on the sidewalks around the church. It'll grow much more crowded over the next hour and a half, with thousands of officers expected to travel here for Officer Mora's funeral.
Image
Feb. 2, 2022, 9:01 a.m. ET
How those who knew Officer Mora have remembered his life.
Image
He had become a police officer focused on change, holding a clear understanding of the department's struggles to forge connections in communities of color.
But outside of his work, he was remembered at vigils and on social media as a "big teddy bear" — someone who was consistently upbeat and compassionate.
Those were among the ways that Officer Wilbert Mora's loved ones have memorialized his life in the week since he was killed while responding to a domestic disturbance in Harlem. He was a young member of the force, a 27-year-old officer who wore shield number 15918 and had first joined the department just under three and a half years ago.
His family was originally from the Dominican Republic, and one retired detective in the department wrote on social media that Officer Mora had been taking care of his aging parents when he died. After his death, his family members donated several of his organs for transplant as a final act of service.
He had grown up in New York at a time when the department's widespread use of stop-and-frisk tactics was further inflaming the relationship between the police and Black and Latino communities.
He appeared to carry that experience onto the force with him: As a student at John Jay College of Criminal Justice in 2018, Officer Mora studied the effects of those policing strategies.
"He even wrote his final research paper examining the effectiveness of proactive and reactive policing in reducing crime, discussing the effects of stop and frisk and community policing in New York City," said Professor Irina Zakirova, who taught his capstone seminar and called him a "a curious and passionate" student.
He had also displayed interests beyond policing while he was a student, studying music and singing bass in a choir. Gregory Sheppard, who was one of his professors, said that he was soft-spoken, thoughtful and reflective.
Like many of the teacher's students, Officer Mora initially struggled to grasp the intricacies of reading music. But he stood out for his devotion to mastering the material, attending one-on-one and group tutoring sessions until he learned how to do it, Professor Sheppard said.
"He wanted to learn and took the time to ask for help," Professor Sheppard said, "and wasn't afraid to ask for help when he wasn't getting something."
Source: https://www.nytimes.com/live/2022/02/02/nyregion/wilbert-mora-funeral-nypd
0 Response to "Funny Video About Officers at Moms Funeral"
Post a Comment